After Death
by AwesomeMango
Summary: Everyone has to die at some point. Len knows that, but he's reluctant to go. What awaits at the other side? That's why he always escapes death. But when Mayu, a Guardian of Death, gets tired of trying to peacefully bring peace to Len, she decides to force it.


The air was chilling to the bones, but Len could hardly feel it; living in a world full of harsh weather has numbed his senses. Eyes the color of the summer sky observed the current surroundings. Everywhere was covered in snow, beautiful snow that gnawed away of all the life in its way. Len found it hilarious, just hilarious, that something so delicate can bring a man or plant or an animal to a slow painful death.

He sighed through his scarf, his breath becoming a white puff of mist, before walking. He would catch too much attention if he kept standing in the middle of the sidewalk. But then again, what do those people care about? It's not like they know him. No, they absolutely don't. So there is no point in judging.

"Len-kun," the sickly sweet voice called. Oh no, it's _her. _"Len-kun, please wait a moment!"

Len stopped in his tracks, lazily glancing at his predator with disinterested eyes. "Whatever you have under your sleeve, Mayu, it's not going to kill me. You will never kill me – I have escaped death many times for many centuries. A little girl like you cannot bring me to my end."

Mayu had finally caught up to the blonde boy. She was breathing heavily; she must have been running for a long time. White puffs of mist came and go in a rhythm. "Len-kun, what are you saying? I'm completely harmless." She smiled innocently, but her eyes told another story. Those ancient eyes – eyes that have seen men and women die for over thousands of years – were there only evidence of her inhuman existence.

"Guardian, do not be foolish. I know what you are. And if you know what's good for you, you'd stop bringing me to my death. It is impossible to kill me; I am too skilled for death."

"Len-kun, I will cut to the chase." Her voice was no longer friendly. "You need to die. Now. You should have died back in the 1800's for Pete's sake! Stop avoiding death. Every human must die."

Len smiled wryly. "If that is the case, I do not wish to stay human." With that said, he turned and walked away.

"LEN-KUN!"

The emotions in those two words told him that she's had enough of his stalling. This past month, she's been trying to convince him to die peacefully by her blade. But now, she has run out of patience; she will strike right at this moment.

Len made a dash for it, piercing through the crowd like an arrow. And when he looked behind him, he could see that Mayu had drawn her sword. Right where he had stood was where the blade was buried, deep.

. . .

Every breath hurts. Fear had brought senses back to Len. And every time he inhaled the icy air, it stung his lungs like acid.

"Len-kun!" Mayu's voice ripped through the chattering crowd, loud and smooth. "Come back here! If you surrender now, I'll give you a less painful death!"

"Oh, hell no!"

"Then so be it!"

Len kept running – running with no destination. He knew if he glanced behind him, he would see the Guardian catching up to him. Despite being very skilled, his weak point was always physical activity.

He dug into his pocket and brought out marbles, throwing it at Mayu's way. There was a small squeal and a _thud. _She was down, but not for long; the Guardians always were quick to get back to their feet.

"LEN-KUN!"

Len desperately picked up the pace. He could feel a stitch form at his side and his muscles were already sore. _Crap, crap, crap, _he thought. This was totally not good.

"Len!"

Len stopped in his tracks, digging his heels into the ground. He had nearly crashed into Oliver, his friend. He had saved him in a car crash, where the little boy had lost his eye. It was easy to distract the Guardian, throwing snails and slugs at him. The guy hated slimy things. In the end, Len had escaped with a bleeding blonde boy in his arms.

"H-Hey, Oliver." Len tried to smile. It was hard to smile when you were out of breath and being chased. "I'm sort of in a rush so—"

"What's the rush?" Oliver looked amused; Len's expression must've looked funny. "Come to my house, I've bought a new game for my Xbox!"

"Sorry, I'm _really _in a rush. Like, this crazy girl is chasing me. Thinks I peeped on her."

"But that's totally not you, Len—"

Oliver was cut off by gasp that escaped Len's lips. They both looked down, down to the sword the pierced itself through the blue-eyed blonde's heart.

"_Len!_"

The sword extracted itself from his chest and Len fell to his knees. No blood came out. There wasn't even a mark. It was as if the sword had gone through him. But he knew that it had made its mark. He could feel himself dying.

"Len, oh my gosh—There's no _blood_? What the—I don't—"

"Don't worry, little boy." Mayu's voice dripped in honey when she spoke, "He's going to a good place. He has escaped death far too many times."

"_Mayu? _What do think—Why do you have that _sword_—"

Mayu placed a hand over Oliver's head. It seemed to glow a soft pink, the light reflecting through the little boy's golden eyes. And before he knew it, he had fallen into a deep sleep. The Guardian didn't catch him when he fell to the ground.

Slowly, Mayu kneeled down to meet Len's eye level. The blonde was struggling to stay awake, but he was just so, so, _so _sleepy. His vision was blurry and it was hard to make out the outline of the Guardian. "Don't worry about him, Len-kun," she said. "I merely put a sleeping spell on him. When he wakes up, he won't remember a thing; he'll think it was just a dream."

The smile on her face made him want to punch her. But whenever he tried to lift his hand, it felt as if a weight was put on it. "There's no way. . . a little girl. . . like you. . . could kill me. . . Not after. . . so long. . . I. . . don't. . . want. . . to. . . d. . . ie."

"Too bad." There was a dreamy sigh from the Guardian. "Sweet dreams, Len-kun."

And that was when everything went black.

. . .

"The poor thing. He still hasn't awoken." A voice. Len couldn't tell if it was a girl or a boy; his head was pounding so hard the voice sounded distorted.

"That's because of his age." Another voice. "He is much older than he looks. Centuries old, I presume. His body is far too worn for him to awake early."

"Really? That means he's overdue. . . I wonder how he managed to live that long."

"He's skilled and cunning, judging from the information I've been given. It's a good thing that Mayu brought him peace. Time has made him bitter."

Mayu. . . Mayu. . . Why does that sound familiar? Why did he feel boiling anger when he hears that name? Mayu. . . Mayu. . . That's right!

"MAYU!" Len screeched, jolting up. For a moment, the world span and blurred, and his stomach churned so badly he felt as if he wanted to vomit. He immediately laid back down. His stomach calmed down, but his vision was still fuzzy.

"He's awake!"

Len's eyes float to a girl. She looked about 16 with dyed teal hair that matches her eyes. She had a smile on her face.

"Go get him some tea, Miku."

His eyes land on an old man. He had short white hair and a long white beard that were both colored green by the edges. His ears were pointed.

"Right away, Elder." said the girl. She got up and disappeared behind a curtain.

"How are you, my boy?" asked the old man. "Are you feeling alright? Death always leaves a splitting headache."

"Explains a lot," Len murmured. "Who are you?"

"I don't have a name. But most people call me 'Elder'."

"You look the part." Len tried to sit up, but the pounding in his head grew louder and he was forced back down. "Am I dead?"

Elder nodded. "Yes. You're now in the Spirit Realm. You've landed in my tribe. The Star Tribe."

"I expected that there was nothing after death."

"There is another life in death, my boy. And it gets exciting; you get to learn magic and other things your mortal body couldn't!"

Len raise my eyebrows. This guy had to be lying. But then again, his voice was so earnest it was hard not to believe.

"Okay. How long have I been asleep?"

"Three days. But don't worry, others have slept for weeks."

Before Len could say anything else, Miku emerges from the curtains with a mug of something steaming. She smiles gently at Len and sets it down on the table beside his bed. Then slowly, she helped him up. Despite her careful efforts, he still felt like vomiting.

"The tea should help," Miku said, bringing the mug to Len's lips. The contents smelled minty and strong.

Len took a sensitive sip. It wasn't like anything he tasted before. It was sweet and strong; something like hot chocolate mixed with peppermint.

He took the mug himself and chugged down the contents. It was just so good – something new from the bland pastries and drinks from Earth.

He heard Miku giggle. "Do you like it? It tastes different because the tea is extracted from herbs native from the spirit world."

When Len was finished, he placed the mug down on the table. He felt better. The headache was less painful and his stomach stopped twisting itself. Whatever he drank, it helped his condition.

"Announce to the rest of the tribe that our new member has awakened. He shall have his initiation tomorrow." said Elder.

Miku nodded and waved goodbye to Len, who nodded in response.

As the teal-dyed girl exited, he couldn't help but think one thought:

_Maybe death isn't so bad. _


End file.
